The constant feeding / snacking of children

I personally think Greggs have a lot to answer for here , hot pastry slop and the like - and Maccy Ds with 1.99 burgers etc - kids and teens start to see these quite calorific fat filled treats as just a quick easy to grab snack often almost daily and then eat meals on top - I’m not against any of these things especially if I’m stick at a service station etc but they shouldn’t be multiple times a week things.

Definitely much more stodgy!
I imagine the main factor in the cut off of afternoon snacks being earlier then is simply the change to the workday. You didn’t have 2 parents commuting home at 6pm to pick one kid up from after school club, drive the other to a club and then home for a late dinner as is common now.
Average dinner time was much earlier in the day.

It wasn't normal when I was growing up but I noticed that it had become so in the 1990s when my children were little. Edited to add: we had our free bottles of milk at morning break, but that was all. At home we might have a drink and a biscuit mid-morning, but that was about it.

As someone born in 1983 this is absolutely true and we're more likely to get stodge than fruit

Snacks were absolutely a thing as least as far as 90. Biscuit and diluted every day at nursery, break time for snack during school and after school snacks to hold you over for dinner were pretty standard.

Kids are starving after swimming and exhausted, particularly little kids. I always take crackers and fruit or cheese strings. A snack doesn't have to be rubbish but why would you leave a kid starving and grumpy during a drive home? For us to go swimming for an hour delays dinner etc so them having a snack means I've time to make a proper meal when we get in.

Yes, and then the parents insist they have "food issues" and (inevitably) ADHD

I can just about see a healthy something-or-other if they're going from a long day at school to a strenuous activity, but some of these kids' jaws rarely seem to stop moving and so often it's junk food

I agree, definitely a high priority to ensure your kids are healthy and fed good foods and it’s really sad when this isn’t the case. Just pointing out there are strong links between resource-scarcity and obesity in the UK and for many families it’s more complicated than someone like me in my middle class bubble probably realises.

I think because I grew up without a snacking habit I was reluctant to give the children snacks. They weren't very good eaters and I was always worried about spoiling their appetite.
I stuck rigidly to a small biscuit mid morning but this meant they were really hungry at meals and I couldn't be flexible and delay lunch or dinner.
In hindsight I wish I could have been more relaxed about the whole thing.

I had ‘snacks’ as a child 11 o’clockses which was anything from fruit, biscuit, something my grandma had baked. Then lunch and 3 oclockses so similar, then dinner all sat down at the table plenty veg etc and usually desert fruit and custard, rice pudding etc, my fave is was at grandmas she’ was an amazing cook.

my sister and I were always outside and active, bikes, roller skating etc both slim kids. My mum had a ‘treat’ tub of mini mars etc which were for big treats, so I did similar with my kids. They’ve always eaten well. 2 are more adventurous with what they ate and. 2 prefer more beige foods. All 4 are slim, tall healthy boys. Moderation, making sure they are eating a range of foods and some treats. I don’t think they were always eating but they were happy kids.

To echo others, yabu, you cant judge based on a small interaction you've seen in their day.
My DD is 6, she's a big snacker but will also ask for fruit some times but others it will be crisps, chocolate or ice cream, she has a dedicated snack box. If on the go, or I know I'll be picking her up on the way back from somewhere, packing something from the cupboard makes more sense and not something that will go warm or bruised in a hot car. We don't eat until 6pm most nights so having a snack at 3pm/4pm makes sense. School lunch is at around 11.30am, I don't know anyone who would wait from 12pm to 6pm without a snack.

Many restaurants are happy to bring a taster out if a diner is unsure.

Some kids are genuinely hungrier though, I feed my 7 year old constantly, both nice, home cooked meals and snacks. He has an incredible metabolism, is running round all the time and is naturally very slim. I feed him whenever he says he's hungry!

Well your house sounds delightful, and comparison clearly brings you joy.

I spose it’s better you vent here then spew your shit to some lesser parent in person

Yeah it's a bit boggling when they put the kid off even trying stuff.

I can understand on one level, you don't want to be in a restaurant and end up with a fussy kid who doesn't like their meal and feeling like it was a waste of money.

But there's usually a compromise, like let them order the meal then if they don't like it they just have the sides or a bit of yours and the "unwanted" meal gets shared out or something.

Wow I didnt know snacking was thing to be so judgemental about. If my DCs are hungry I feed them. Who wants to deal with a hangry child.

You have no insight into those families lives or weeks. That could be there treat for the week and dinner isnt until much later. The snapshot you see if that....just a snapshot of what they are eating.

Catch me on a friday and you'd think think my children have crap diets - ice creams after school and pizzas for dinner sometimes a dessert. But thats our weekly treat. The rest of the week its home cooked meals and healthy snack.

tbh I don’t really care what other people feed their children. But neither of mine have ever snacked. They just eat 3 decent meals a day. I just don’t understand why they would need snacks, I never snacked as a child and don’t as an adult. My eldest in particular, who is 4, is a massive, strapping hulk of a thing - not fat at all, but just generally big and tall. He’s very strong as well. I certainly don’t think he’s starving!

I did used to find it frustrating that every baby and toddler group had snack time, usually with stuff that I’d never give my child either. Luckily one of my children was never remotely interested (he’d had a big breakfast after all!), and just carried on playing. But my other child would always join in, and then come lunchtime (literally only an hour later in some cases) be much fussier than usual - she wasn’t hungry enough to bother with things that weren’t her favourite, I suppose. So if only for my selfish reason of wanting snack-free toddler groups, I suppose I do wish people fed their children less snacks!

When I was at primary school (started in 1980) I had breakfast, milk at breaktime, lunch, a snack after school, dinner and supper before bed. Nothing wrong with children eating frequent small amounts and it is nothing new. Children become overweight when they eat too much and move too little. What and how much they are eating is the important thing.

I’d be happy for your child to snack but I would not be happy if the snacks were junk food

( says she eating chocolate as she types )

If your only issue is chubby children then my skinny child is ok to snack?

Exactly.

Your little boy sounds lovely 😊

A bit more detail so I don't sound like an ogre. My DD would be offered more - vegetables, another sausage - at the table at 7-ish and say: 'No thank-you'. Then at 7.30pm, she would say 'Mum, I'm hungry'. And I would say 'You were offered more only half an hour ago and said no thank-you. Mealtimes are when you eat. If you are asking for a snack half an hour after we've all had dinner, you can't have eaten enough.' It only happened a few times, which suggests not allowing a snack did the job. Supper is good. Milk and biscuits.

Depends on their age. When they are little several small meals or snacks is a good idea and as they grow they are more able to manage larger meals and three meal times.

Small children do often need snacks - or 5 small
meals a day

it’s what the snacks consist of that’s changed over time - an apple or banana , a slice of bread and butter

It’s like Mumsnet judgement bingo; we’ve had poor kids, smoking mums and some poor PP having to pay taxes to support strangers poor health!

i don’t really snack, didn’t realise is makes me morally superior. I trust my 12 and 14 year old to decide if they are hungry.